before 950;Middle Englishfeden,Old Englishfēdan; cognate with Gothicfodjan,Old Saxonfōdian. See food

Related forms

feedable, adjective

outfeed, verb (used with object), outfed, outfeeding.

refeed, verb, refed, refeeding.

unfeedable, adjective

Synonyms

1, 2. nourish, sustain. 5. nurture, support, encourage, bolster. 13. Feed,fodder,forage,provender mean food for animals. Feed is the general word: pig feed; chicken feed.Fodder is especially applied to dry or green feed, as opposed to pasturage, fed to horses, cattle, etc.: fodder for winter feeding; Cornstalks are good fodder.Forage is food that an animal obtains (usually grass, leaves, etc.) by searching about for it: Lost cattle can usually live on forage.Provender denotes dry feed, such as hay, oats, or corn: a supply of provender in the haymow and corn cribs.

Antonyms

1, 2. starve.

fee

[fee] /fi/

noun

1.

a charge or payment for professional services:

a doctor's fee.

2.

a sum paid or charged for a privilege:

an admission fee.

3.

a charge allowed by law for the service of a public officer.

4.

Law.

an estate of inheritance in land, either absolute and without limitation to any particular class of heirs (fee simple) or limited to a particular class of heirs (fee tail)

an inheritable estate in land held of a feudal lord on condition of the performing of certain services.

a territory held in fee.

5.

a gratuity; tip.

verb (used with object), feed, feeing.

6.

to give a fee to.

7.

Chiefly Scot. to hire; employ.

Origin

1250-1300;Middle English < Anglo-French;Old Frenchfie, variant of fieffief. See feudal

Old English fedan "nourish, feed, sustain, foster," from Proto-Germanic *fodjan (cf. Old Saxon fodjan, Old Frisian feda, Dutch voeden, Old High German fuotan, Old Norse foeða, Gothic fodjan "to feed"), from PIE *pa- "to protect, feed" (see food). Feeding frenzy is from 1989, metaphoric extension of a phrase that had been used of sharks since 1950s.

n.

"action of feeding," 1570s, from feed (v.). Meaning "food for animals" is first attested 1580s. Of machinery, from 1892.

fee

n.

late 13c., from Old French fieu, fief "fief, possession, holding, domain; feudal duties, payment," from Medieval Latin feodum "land or other property whose use is granted in return for service," widely said to be from Frankish *fehu-od "payment-estate," or a similar Germanic compound, in which the first element is cognate with Old English feoh "money, movable property, cattle" (also German Vieh "cattle," Gothic faihu "money, fortune"), from PIE *peku- "cattle" (cf. Sanskrit pasu, Lithuanian pekus "cattle;" Latin pecu "cattle," pecunia "money, property"); second element similar to Old English ead "wealth."

OED rejects this, and suggests a simple adaptation of Germanic fehu, leaving the Medieval Latin -d- unexplained. Sense of "payment for services" first recorded late 14c. Fee-simple is "absolute ownership," as opposed to fee-tail "entailed ownership," inheritance limited to some particular class of heirs (second element from Old French taillir "to cut, to limit").